Midi

One of the reasons I started retuning pieces to different modes was the hope that something good might come out of it by chance. One example has appeared. I don’t think “good” is the right word, but it at least sounds intentional (most pieces just sound accidentally out of tune).

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Land of Hope and Glory retuned into Ultra Locrian.

It is dark and disharmonious. Hitting a note on nearly every beat combined with a lack of any real resolution gives it an unrelenting monotony. And somehow, halfway through when the higher octave repeat starts you still end up with the feeling of: “It’s still going? And somehow it’s worse?”.

I would like to end on a cheerful note. Nothing with “Locrian” in the name really does that. So instead, have some Sonic the Hedgehog music:

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One big advantage of doing this to the Duke Nukem 3D theme is that the original was already a MIDI file. That means people familiar with it are already used to hearing slightly different versions, and the version I generate is no more or less authentic than any of the others.

Although I have to admit I do not remember hearing good quality tubular bells on the computer I first played it on (but they have since grown on me while making this).